If said bad guy uses/finds out their real names he gets control over them.
It starts off with a young male protagonist that is from a version of "our world" he discovers he can transform any matter into anything he wants. (one point he turns a bullet into a rose) . We then meet another young man who lives in a world where virtual reality has taken over and he and his friends play a game most of the time. Robots in his house take care of everything. We then meet a girl who is from a middle age type world and is a bad ass. I don't recall much about her.
I hope this is enough plot to help!